Burdened Tyger

So this scroll, I was lucky enough to have ages to complete, so much so that I almost forgot it was going out!

I didn't get a lot to work with on information, so I had to email/facebook message around until I got enough information to glean down to the needed words. I tweaked a faux Russian hand I found here . My calligraphy is still pretty meh but it gave the scroll the right feeling.

I know that SOMEwhere in my bookmarks is the source for this piece. (I believe it's here, but I -will- locate the folio number as soon as I'm able. I know I wrote it on the back of the dang scroll.)

Out of everything, I'm proudest of the header and how I fit it together. It felt to me like the sort of thing that would be very important to get the right feel, as you see ones like it ALL OVER other Russian/Eastern European manuscripts.

Here's where I'm about to join the East Kingdom's "Team Blue Square"

But eventually it came together.

Ta daaaaa!

Something I'm still working on is making the illumination and the calligraphy all fit, comfortably on the page. I feel like I often have too much text in the wrong size (or too little) and the scroll is off-balance. I suppose that will become easier with experience.

A practice piece on figures

Trying to practice and so I chose a fave of mine to experiment on with no hope of it becoming a blank.
May add some more defining lines to the borders still...

Oh and here's the link to the source so you can see how badly I mangled the architecture and borders. http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=60440

Silver Cresent scroll

I had the distinct honor of illuminating a scroll for Boden Henebry's induction to the Order Silver Cresent, which was presented to him at Great Northeastern War. It was my first time working on pergamenata (I'm not even sure I'm spelling that right!)
Here are some in progress pictures and a picture of the semi-finished piece. I've been unable to obtain a picture of it with the calligraphy (done by the magnificent Master Harold von Auerbach) but if I do, I'll be sure to post it.
Oh, and here is my source.

Sketching out...

Checking the size. I did have to resize it and add another inch on each side to fit the words.

Gold goes first! Even if it's just goauche. I cannot wait to try my hand at gilding.

Upside down! Dark colors next and then we go up.

No detail is weird. And if I'd had more time, I would have done more....

I had problems getting green to behave this time, so I opted for clean white lines instead of layering lighter green  (and other colors too I suppose) on the leaves. I only had a week or so to get this finished so I'm fairly pleased with the result. This was my first scroll to actually make it out to court (my baronial level scrolls still are waiting for our next event)! That it was a royal court at that (and for an order of high merit?!) Is a baffling honor. 

Illumination and upcomings

I've been busy, okay? Busy doing embroidery mostly. Busy learning illumination. Busy doing the Golden Seamstress competition, busy getting ready to autocrat our summer Palio event. Busy fixing a sewage break that flooded our basement, busy helping my mother with an injury, busy with friends, trying to write and parenting my 5 year old in the midst of it all.
And that's just 2017, guys.

Included here are pictures of some recent illuminations I did, recreating an E from the Worms Bible, a salamander from a beastiary, and a moth from a 16th century music book. I have links to the actual documents but I am le tired and on mah phone so it will have to wait until later. These are done in goauche, which, after a frustrating few days of learning, is becoming my favorite medium.
My goal is to make blanks for my barony to use for tourneys and order awards. Fingers crossed, but our herald implied I was good enough to start passing blanks along to him. So that's cool.

Upcoming blog posts will include:

Princess Honig's Viking coat and dress for Birka
Golden Seamstress and learning how to document stuff for A&S
My entirely handsewn 13th century dress based off the Maciejowski Bible
Autocratting
Joining House Strangewayes
Planning for Pennsic War.